With a nod, she acknowledged his greeting, not wanting to waste time writing a formality that anyone could clearly understand from a simple motion. She'd stopped letting it hinder her. She'd completely stopped caring about her differences beyond making sure that she could adapt to the world around her, rather than trying to make it adapt to her. Not being deaf at the same time, she felt she didn't face the challenges of others; she simply didn't speak. Maybe someday she would, but for now she bore the wieght of her self-imposed disability as well as she could. And she wouldn't let it hold her back for even a moment. After all, the Drift would make everything clear once she found a partner.

Alright, so it got awkward fast. But let's face it, several of their fellow candidates had stories of loss and disaster, so they couldn't afford to be too sentimental and emotional about it. She'd have to press on, as would they all. So she pondered for a moment, then wrote something briefly:

I'm sorry.